“I can write her up for that,” I bark, jabbing the brew button, then collapsing into my chair. “Ishouldwrite her up for that.”
Lina holds up her hands. “Whoa, boss man. Pump the brakes. That’s a little extreme. It was a little unprofessional, but sure as hell not an offense you should write her up for. We need her, remember? We need to keep her. You can’t just get rid of her—those parents and the supe would bepissed.” She pauses. “Do you want to switch? I’ll trade you for Elias,” she says, referring to our… golden retriever of a Physical Education teacher. “He’s driving me insane this year.”
I cut her a glance. “No. He annoys me too.”
Lina grumbles. “What’s going on with you?”
I lean all the way back in my chair, rubbing my eyes. I’m finding it difficult to answer her, because I don’t know myself. “There are so many things that I don’t know where to start.”
“Why don’t you start with Georgia?” Lina asks, not one to mince words.
“What about her?” I fire back.
She shoots me a look. “Oh please, Oliver. The clueless act doesn’t suit you.”
I take a deep breath. In and out. “I don’t know where to begin, so I apologize in advance if I ramble.”
Lina frowns but remains silent, giving me space to talk it out.
“The superintendent basically offered me a promotion to his office as his Deputy Superintendent if I get Class 302’s test scores up,” I begin. Her eyes widen.
“This is it. What I’ve been waiting for. The next step in my career path. And he says that all the eyes in the district are on me to make that happen.”
“Well, you’re going to make it happen,” she tells me, waving her hand. “But I thought we hated all the people in District and Central Office. You really want to go work there?”
“One hundred percent. But if I make it up there… actually no,whenI make it up there, I’m going to do my damndest to actually work. To make change.”
“Okay. So then let’s talk about Georgia. Why are you worrying about getting her test scores up?” Lina tells me. “I told you, she showed us the screenshots for her class test scores for the past several years. Her stats were incredible. And even if they weren’t, you could coach her. You’ve proven that you are capable of that over the last five years. You’ve done it for the entire school. You’re a hell of a coach. ”
“That’s because everyone I’ve ever worked with here has been a normal fucking human being,” I explode, choosing to ignore the stunned look on Lina’s face. “Georgia is not. She drives me insane. She pushes buttons I didn’t know I had.” I tick things off my fingers. “She’s headstrong. Disorganized. Unpredictable. Sarcastic. Impertinent.” I stand up and startpacing around my office. “She has a retort for everything I say to her. It’s impossible for me to work with someone like that.”
“I mean, Elias is kind of like that,” Lia offers.
Elias isn’t a gorgeous woman who makes my dick hard when she calls me sir. I shake my head. “It’s different with Ms. Baker.”
“I think you’re reading her all wrong, Oliver. She’s sweet, and she’s clearly a fantastic teacher. She cares deeply about her students. And I’ve seen you lurking outside her classroom like a creep when she’s having one of her spectacular moments.” Lina’s eyebrows furrow. “I’m not sure why you’re not seeing this, but you’re very different around her. You’re normally more measured, but… it’s like you’re all amped up. On ten. You raise your voice at her. I’ve never seen you treat anyone else that way. In fact, I’m actually impressed with her ability to keep herself in check considering your attitude towards her. Frankly, I think it’s really weird, kind of unprofessional, and I think our staff thinks it’s weird, too.”
I stop my pacing and look at her. “Other people are noticing? It’s that bad?”
“They certainly noticed just a moment ago. Also, what’s with the ‘Ms. Baker’? You don’t call anyone by their formal title.”
I want to tell Lina it reminds me that Ms. Baker is my subordinate. I want to tell her I like it when Ms. Baker calls me Mr. Flores. Instead, I go with, “I don’t know her well enough to refer to her by her first name yet.”
Lina eyes me. “You’re full of shit, but okay. I just want to remind you of something. You are her boss. You have to remain professional, too. There’s a power imbalance there.”
I sit back down in my chair, chastened. She’s right. I tell her so.
“Of course I’m right. I’m a woman who has worked for plenty of men who thought they knew better than me andtried to tell me how to do my job.” She glares at me. “You’re not one of them, thank Jesus. But you are on your way to being that for Georgia.”
I lean back in my chair, running my hands through my hair. “You’re right, you’re right. All right, future principal, how would you coach me through this situation right now? What should I do?”
“Tell me all the ways she’s a good teacher. How, in her few weeks here, she’s made the school a better place for kids,” Lina fires at me.
I wince as Lina uses a coaching strategy I’ve taught her onme. Now I have to play along. “She apparently has historically high test scores.”
“Mmhm…”
“She… has complete instructional control of her classroom,” I offer begrudgingly.
